Develop the highest proportion of high-skilled jobs among OECD countries – promote skills through a National Education Service

Spend 3% of GDP on R&D

Invest £250 bn on infrastructure

But, again, detail is lacking

And, on top of this, they say many more police, firemen, nurses and doctors are to be recruited and existing public sector workers given significant pay rises to compensate for those they have been denied during the austerity years

Labour assume that simply pouring more resources and cash into struggling public services will solve their current problems when there’s huge waste in most of them – and often it’s method changes, not input volume increases, that’s needed

And there’s no mention of specific support/ incentives for private sector organisations and entrepreneurs to create the wealth to pay for all the above – they seem to think taxing ‘fat cats’ more heavily will produce the funds needed

Liberal Democratic party manifesto:

They make no specific mention of productivity

However, they do promise to invest in the above areas viz:

Build 300,000 homes a year by 2022

Put £5bn into a new British Housing and Infrastructure Development Bank

Set up a major capital investment programme across all UK

Invest in road and rail infrastructure

Bring more private investment into renewable energy

Green party manifesto:

Again, no mention of productivity

Introduce a four-day working week up to a maximum of 35 hours – they’ve spotted that ‘when people are exhausted, their productivity goes down’

Ensure a living wage for all

Introduction of a universal basic income

Meanwhile, many months ago, the Tory Government set up special inquiries into ‘better ways of measuring productivity’ and a PLG (Productivity Leadership Group) but we have yet to learn what difference such initiatives have made to improving the nation’s productivity

Conclusion:

Overall, one gets the impression that words about productivity issued by all UK political parties flow easily and superficially but serious practical action is lacking – the same as at board level in most organisations